Aquatic Technology Pool & Spa, "Creating Water as Art."™

Monday, January 14, 2013

The edge of an infinity pool functions as a gigantic skimmer weir. A normal pool with wall skimmers only has 8" of skimmer weir (per skimmer). A vanishing edge pool may have 20-50 FEET of skimming weir.

When the pool is in the "spill-over" mode, all of the debris in the pool flows over the edge. This explains why the catch basin is always full of leaves, bugs and dirt.

Without a filter on the pump that returns water from the catch basin to the upper pool, this debris would be ground up and recirculated into the upper pool. Negative edge pools that do not have a filter(s) on the edge pump, turn cloudy the instant this debris is pumped back into the pool.

Besides, who wants to swim in a cloudy pool full of ground up bugs, worms, tree frogs and leaves?

Energy Efficiency

Filtration of the pool can usually be performed with a small energy efficient pump. Usually a 1/2 to 1 horsepower pump is sufficient.Large volumes of moving water are not necessary. Water clarity is improved at slower velocities with longer filtration cycles (longer run times).The pumps required to create the "flooded edge" effect are usually much larger than what is required to merely filter the pool. Pumps of 2 to 5 horsepower are not uncommon.

To design a vanishing edge pool, that combines the edge pump and primary filtration system into one system is foolhardy. Though $5,000 - $7,500 might be saved on the initial project cost, the expense of operating this larger pump to filter the pool will quickly exceed any initial cost savings.

PAOLO BENEDETTI is the Founder and President of Aquatic Technology Pool and Spa. Aquatic Technology is a swimming pool design, aquatic consulting and construction firm. We also offer design collaboration and project management services to architects and design professionals. Aquatic Technology specializes in high-end luxury pools, hotel and resort pools and spas, water parks and aquatic facilities. We have international aquatic design and construction experience, which includes successful collaboration with world famous architects and construction firms.
Paolo Benedetti is an internationally renown designer and builder of the Worlds most luxurious watershapes, swimming pools, spas, fountains, and water features. Paolo Benedetti, has been described as the Michealangelo of the swimming pool industry.
He accepts design commissions from around the world. So you are never too far away to deserve the best that life has to offer!
Paolo collaborates with architects, landscape architects, design professionals, developers, property owners, pool builders, and those who just relish the finest things that life has to offer.

Education, Certifications, Credentials

Paolo has a Degree in Business Management from California State University. He has performed post-graduate and professional studies in the fields of Materials Science, Art History, Architecture, Design & Spatial relationships, Art - Mediums, Materials, & Color Theory, Fluid Dynamics (hydraulics), World History, Geology, Structural Engineering, and Construction Management.

Paolo has continued his professional education in the field of Water Shape Design, by becoming one of the first designers to be certified by the Society of Watershape Designers.

He has performed countless forensic case studies of failed swimming pool structures, consulting for property owners & contractors alike. He sits on committees that write & edit the Contractor's Licensing Exam for the State of California. In 2001, the State of California deemed him a "Subject Matter Expert." Paolo has also previously held a Top Secret Security Clearance.

As a consultant, he has consulted, advised, and designed swimming pools for Architects, other swimming pool contractors, Landscape Architects, and property developers. He has even designed the personal pools of other swimming pool contractors - ones that went onto win international awards for those builders!

Paolo is also an educator, teaching the nuances of complex swimming pool design & construction to international audiences at least twice annually at a construction school. He moderates a on-line swimming pool design & construction forum - providing most of the solutions & answers to issues presented.

He is the principal & founder of Aquatic Technology Pool & Spa, and the European design firm "il Studio Paolo." The firm is licensed in California as a General Building Contractor & Swimming Pool Contractor (#721117, classes: B & C-53).

Continuing Education & Experience

Paolo travels the world personally visiting the craftsmen, factories, and vendors that he employs - learning firsthand their capabilities and limitations. He travels the globe seeking to expand the horizons of the inspiration for his designs.

For example, Paolo has studied the architecture of the Moors in Istanbul and at the Alhambra & Generalife in Granada, Espana and various sites around Cordoba, Espana; ancient fountains and ruins of Ephesus, the Roman ruins and pools of Aphrodisias; Roman mosaics in Merida & Italica (Sevilla), Espana; major temples & sites of Egypt; art & tombs of the Etruscans, Phoenesians & Ephesians; the Renaissance Movement, art and the Boboli Gardens in Florence; and the architecture, gardens, & fountains of Versailles.

He has studied art, history & the architecture of Paris, from his townhouse just outside of the city.

He has performed studies of the art of Pablo Picasso & Joan (Juan) Miro in their private studios, and has delved deeper into their art & lives at the Fundacion de Picasso, Malaga, Spain, and Fundacio Pilar i Joan Miro a Mallorca, Balaeric Islands.

Paolo has expressed a focused interest in the Byzantine era of the Roman Empire. From the adoption of Christianity by Constantine, his influence in the formation of the modern bible, the efforts of Constantine's Mother Helen in collecting the early Relics of Christianity, Helen's maintenance and preservation of the early sites of religious importance, the Roman influence on other societies. The surviving art, architecture, engineering and mosaics of the Byzantine Empire displayed the ever increasing ingenuity of mankind.

He has toured the famous glass factories of Murano, Italy and has observed the glass tile mosaic operations of Bisazza, in Vicenza, Italy. He has visited the operations of granite/marble quarries & processors in places as far away as Turkey, Italy, Vermont, Brazil, & Egypt.

Paolo has experienced Carnival in Venice, Italy. He has explored the House & Gardens of the Virgin Mary (her last known residence) and the ancient sites of the 7 Churches in the Book of Revelations (Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatria, Sardis, Ephesus, Philadelphia, Laodicea).

He has has witnessed a rare performance of Bach's Passion of Christ by the combined companies of the Paris Opera & Paris Symphony - inside Paris' Cathedral de Notre Dame.

The highlight of his travels, was when he was actually allowed to kiss Jesus Christs' Crown of Thorns. It is recognized by the Vatican as one of Christendom's 12 sacred artifacts, attributed to the Passion of Jesus Christ. It origins are documented as far as Saint Helen, the mother of the Roman Emperor Constantine. It was the subject of the Crusades and even the motivation for the construction of the church, Sainte Chapelle. To this day, the Sainte Chapelle church stands nearby the Cathederal de Notre Dame. Stained glass windows & a beautiful alter inside the Sainte Chapelle Church pay homage to the Crown & document it's arrival in Paris. Refer to: www.notredamedeparis.fr/Veneration-of-the-Crown-of-Thorns for more information & images.

On a personal note... Paolo is a student of the martial arts. He holds advanced black belts in tae kwon do & eskrima & he teaches martial arts a few hours each week. He loves cooking for friends & family in his 800 sq. ft. gourmet kitchen - complete with a 14 foot water feature down the center! He enjoys collecting & trading wrist watches, ancient Roman coins, and stamps in his passport. He enjoys spending time in the outdoors with his two teenage sons.

What others are saying about Paolo & his abilities...

"Paolo (Benedetti) is one of the top Aquatic Designers in the World," heralded the editor & publisher of one of the leading consumer luxury swimming pool magazines. "He is constantly surprising us with something new."

He has been described as, "The Aquatic Industry's equivalent of da Vinci & Buonarroti."

"A master illusionist, an expert at deceiving the eye and tricking the brain."

Paolo or his projects have appeared in the Wall Street Journal, CNN, New York Times, USA Today, HGTV, and the following magazines: Robb Report, Lux (Spain), the Affluent Pages, Millionaire, Luxury Pools, Water Shapes, Gentry, Luxury Homes, Options, Lexus, Seasons (the Four Seasons Hotels Magazine), Luxury Real Estate, Aqua, and the Franklin Report.

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